A motorist was accidentally shot in the hand by an El Paso County sheriff's sergeant following a vehicle chase Sunday in the Upper Valley, sheriff's officials said Tuesday.

The driver, who is recovering at a hospital, faces charges of evading arrest and aggravated assault with a vehicle.

Sheriff's officials said that the incident began about 7:15 a.m. Sunday when Sgt. Michael Peters tried to stop a vehicle that was going the wrong way on South Desert Boulevard near the Outlet Shoppes at El Paso mall. The car's driver refused to stop and a chase continued northbound.

At South Desert and Vinton Road, the car's driver is accused of nearly hitting another deputy who was working at the scene of an unrelated accident, officials said.

The car finally stopped at Vinton Road and Doniphan Drive. When Peters was taking the driver into custody, his handgun was accidentally fired and a gunshot grazed the driver's hand. The type of weapon was not disclosed.

Channel 14-KFOX reported that the deputy involved had a seizure after the shooting.

Sheriff's spokesman Deputy Mariano Valle only said there was a "medical incident" following the shooting.

Officials said that a bystander and other deputies helped Peters, who was taken to a hospital along with the wounded driver.

The driver's name has not been released because he has not been booked into jail, Valle said.

As standard procedure, Peters was placed on administrative duty pending an internal investigation into the shooting.